* COMBUSTIBLE DON'T BREAK MY HEART, [harley]

Altair met Harley's eyes with a smirk. Oh, she knew. She knew a lot, and she wondered if the redhead realized this. She also wondered if Samson saw his girlfriend yet, but he had his head inclined. He was looking at the girl across from him, and she assumed the two were friends. However, she doubted the girl knew about Harley and Samson's continued relationship. Still, noting the Thunder's uncomfortable demeanor, the other girl shot Altair a look. Did she think that the Fire leader would be intimidated? The other girl was a mousy little brunette, nothing to her, really. There were some pockmarks on her face that looked like leftover from acne. Altair practically sneered at her, but she was still keeping her demeanor pleasant and flirty. She didn't want to ruin this just because some bitch thought she could trump her. She was trying to get at another bitch, after all.

Samson lifted his head, and Altair felt even more successful as the redhead walked by nonchalantly. What are you gonna do, Sammy? Call out to her? But you can't, sweetheart. There was nothing he could do in this situation, he was completely at her mercy. C'mon now, Harley baby, this is your lover here. She kept her hands on Samson at all times, bringing her hand across his back. He shuddered, and she knew it was not from pleasure, but who cared at this point? She still had her hands on the bitch's boyfriend. No one liked that. Well, Altair figured that through experience with other girls who had been in committed relationships. She had never been in one herself, she didn't know what jealousy was. In any area, actually, not only relationships. Why should she be jealous of anyone when she was fucking Altair Bennett? She saw no rhyme or reason for that.

Her eyes went over to where Harley was, a girl sitting next to her. The redhead didn't look pleasant, but then again, when did she ever look pleasant? She was a Fire, they weren't the most pleasant of sorts. "Sammy, you're single now, right?" she asked, holding onto his arm now. He moved it around to get her to release him, but there was nothing she could do short of knocking her off the bench. But he looked at her then, his eyes narrowed. Was this him angry? She didn't know, but there was a coldness there. Something sinister. "Leave him alone, all right?" Mousy Girl said sternly, her eyes also electric. Altair lifted an eyebrow, throwing her arm around his shoulders again. "I don't hear Sammy complaining." Because he couldn't, of course. He just sat brewing, while her blue gaze found Harley's again. You don't like this, do you? she thought, wishing she could say these things out loud. But she couldn't. She needed to play her cards just right, she couldn't reveal her hand to the redhead.

Harley was so disappointing. Altair wanted a rise, a reaction. Something she could feed off of. It would be her building block. Have the Earths snuffed you out, Harls? the Fire leader mocked in her own mind. She thought of Lark, and that had been a worse betrayal than Harley’s. She had known the girl personally, and Lark had defected under her leadership. That shit just did not fly with Altair. She liked her rule to go unchallenged, even by her partner. It was a good thing they got along rather well, otherwise all hell would have broken loose within the Fire element by now. But no, the two got along swimmingly. And she could have quite possibly gotten along with Harley if not for the fact that she was playing these games.

And now I have your boy toy. She yearned to say these things out loud, her arms around Samson, claiming him as her own. If she knew what it was like for Harley to watch this, she might have stopped. But she’d never experienced jealousy when seeing an ex-lover in the arms of another, kissing, touching. It was her sloppy seconds, why she should get jealous over that? The redhead seemed to have been abandoned by her group, and Altair didn’t know why, not close enough to feel the predatory heat she radiated. She would have enjoyed it immensely. Then came the anger, but not in the way that Altair wanted. Her eyes hardened into pointed arrows. ”Oh me oh my,” she said scathingly, ”Sammy here can’t talk? Must have flown right over my empty blond head.” She made a sweeping motion over her hair, rolling her eyes. ”Thank you for reminding me, Johnson.” She looked back at Samson, who she noticed was avoiding eye contact with his girlfriend, pretending as if nothing was going on between them.

She took a strand of his hair again. ”He doesn’t need to talk for me, though, I’m sure he can make other sounds.” Altair gave a soft purring noise, the connotation clear. With a firm grip, he took her wrist in his hand and settled it over her other one, patting it in place as if to make a point. ”So tell me, do you know Harley? She used to be on our side. Funny how she comes over here, thinking she can challenge the leader of her old element.” His eyes snapped back to hers, and the girl saw it there, that desire to stand up for Harley, to hurt her. She liked that vicious look, and it would look even better in bed, wouldn’t it? Did she really want to sleep with him? Well, she’d sleep with anything that had a pulse. ”And she’s sticking up for a Thunder…huh. Interesting. Aren’t you going to tell her off? Mind her business? You are her enemy, after all.” This was such a fun game, she really liked playing it. She hoped that Harley would play along with her, it would certainly be more interesting.

Altair was as predatory as a snake, and if she were a rattlesnake she'd have been letting off her warning sound right then. Nappy? "You're one to talk, firecrotch." She felt the Thunder bristle under her touch. Nothing revealed it on his face, but they both knew that he was outted. She was feeling triumphant until she saw a smile tug at his lips when Harley advised him not to touch her. If Altair thought she could keep her cool, she had been mistaken. How could she have even tried? That wasn't the kind of person she was. Even though she was clean and she made sure of it, the words still sparked her rage. "Jealous? Not many people want to sleep with a skinny little twat. It's gotta be like fucking a bag of bones or something." She felt a little sparking on her skin and realized that Samson was emitting an electrical charge. Was he even aware of it? She removed her hand, glanced at him before turning back to his girlfriend.

Harley's insults held no water, but it was the fact that she had the nerve to state them that had Altair's eyes narrowed into slits, resembling that snake again. "You're cute," she said shortly. "Grasping at straws? Please, you can do better. Try me." Let's see if this bitch wanted to piss her off more, this could be a fun little game. Have at it, Harley, she was just encouraging the predator, bringing her out. Altair would fight. She didn't care that this was a mess hall. She whipped that Earth bitch in there, she'd whip the Fire traitor all the same. "There's a reason I'm leader." Her blue eyes sparked with rage. "Have the Earths made you soft and stupid? You've got nothing, Johnson." Fight me bitch, I will end you. She was confident in this fact. Always confident. Even when she knew she had no chance against a college student. A college student who still considered herself a Fire? "And what's that supposed to mean?" she snapped, half-rising out of her seat. "Just because you turned tour back on your element doesn't make you any better than us. That isn't how it works, baby." Harley was following what she believed in, sure, but she did have to know that she couldn't have the best of both words.

Harley challenged the Thunder then, something that surprised the blond. She looked at Samson. What're you gonna do? It would be interesting to see him tell off his girlfriend, because she was sure by now that the both of them had an unspoken connection that communicated their knowledge. Would he think it wasn't worth it, what with the things Altair knew? "Don't think he can say anything, now can he?" Harley did point that out, after all, and she lifted her eyebrow as if expecting a challenge to those words. It felt like a stalemate. He didn't look at Harley. Altair just smirked. "What's that, Sammy, tired of playing both fields?" She knew just what she was suggesting. Now that she was off of him, Samson took advantage and rose, looking at Altair. "Leaving?" And he walked away, leaving Altair to glare at Harley. "I know everything, so don't even pretend," she seethed dangerously.

[dayum, harley is getting real. o.o]

Altair knew she was easy, but had no shame in it. Why should she? She was safe and fucking was something that everyone did. She simply didn't care to get to know whoever's bed she was sharing that night. Why get feelings involved in something so primal, something for pleasure and procreation? Irgo, Altair saw no point in insulting someone's sexual identity. She fucked who she wanted because she liked it. It was a hobby, like model trains or playing monopoly. "Keeping them closed like a good churchgoing girl." She scoffed. "Well good for you, but that means jack shit." She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, it does mean that your twat must be full of cobwebs." Unless she's only spreading them for Samson, which still didn't mean much to Altair. Monogamy was boring, she didn't even want to entertain the idea of it. She could still feel the electricity lacing Sam's skin like a threat, and she wondered how close to snapping he was. It would be quite interesting for him to snap and punch her. But maybe he had those never punching a girl morals. She hated men like that. If you truly respected women, you'd treat them just like any other opponent.

This conversation felt like the verbal form of a game of chess. A war, placing their pieces right where they were needed. Altair studied her enemy. She stepped up to the plate, and the Fire leader almost admired that. But honestly, the only person she admired was herself. She tilted her head at the quip. "Ah, that's good one. What are we, in the fifth grade? Gonna tell a yo momma joke next?" She rolled her vivid blue eyes. Did Harley think she could intimidate her? There was no chance, Altair was far too confident in herself to ever back down from something like this. "Tell me then, who's making my decisions? Who is above me? If you think that being in this alliance is having other people do things for you, then you're obviously the one with the problem." Her voice was calm and controlled, she felt on top of this right now. "The people in?" Altair repeated. "The people in don't want anything to do with you. Why would they? Turning your back on the alliance is the same thing as turning your back on everyone who might have once given a fuck about you." The Fires were close knot, something she was proud of her element for. They stuck together, thick or thin. Harley was no longer a part of that and never again would be.

Altair smirked, placing her hands on the table and leaning in. "And Jolene's gone." Altair had heard some rumors about the girl, mainly that she'd been shipped off to the looney bin. Whatever the case, she wasn't at the Academy anymore. "So what, did you move back in on him after she disappeared?" Altair didn't know the details of that situation, probably never would. That didn't matter. She had enough information. "I'm done playing games with you, cunt." A strange sound came from the mousy girl's throat, sounding like a cross between protest and disgust. "Ever go near the alliance again, and I will find out." Flames appeared in the palm of her hand, a small bonfire on her palm. "And I have half a mind to teach you right here." Her eyes narrowed in challenge, features stark and hard. She wanted this fight, and she planned on having one, whether Harley wanted it or not. Teach her to fuck with Altair Bennett.